Beach and lawn chairs adapted to be folded for transportation and/or storage typically have a frame fabricated from elongated structural members, preferably metal. The frames of such chairs have transversely spaced apart left hand and right hand frame side assemblies that are substantially parallel to each other. In a set-up condition, each side frame assembly has a front leg member extending in a generally vertically upward direction and a rear leg member pivotally connected at its upper end directly or indirectly to an upper end of the front leg member and which is rearwardly and downwardly inclined from the upper end of the front leg member. Such side frame assemblies also include an upwardly extending chair back support member which is pivotally connected at its lower end to the rear leg member intermediate the ends of the rear leg member by an over-the-center linkage that positions the back support member so that it is supported at its lower end on the rear leg member and inclined upwardly and rearwardly therefrom when the chair is unfolded from its closed or flatly folded storage condition to its open or set-up condition for use. Such side frame assemblies also include a seat support member generally supported by the front and rear leg members in a generally horizontal condition when the chair is in its set-up condition.
Conventional beach and lawn chairs of the prior art having the left hand and right hand frame side assemblies such as hereinbefore generally described also commonly have transversely extending rigid connecting members providing fixed connection between the front leg members, the rear leg members, and often the back support members as well. Additional rigidly fixed transverse connecting members may also extend between the structural members that support the seat of such a chair. The aforesaid rigid or non-collapsible transversely extending connecting members are generally horizontally disposed when such a conventional prior art chair is in its set-up condition. Thus, it should be immediately apparent that conventional folding chairs of a prior art type as hereinbefore described are foldable to only one storage and/or transport condition, namely a flatly folded condition.
Such prior art chairs provide the convenience of easy fold-up, and are lightweight so as to permit easy transportability. Common uses for such chairs are at the beach or at a picnic where easy set-up and break-down, as well as the ability to carry the chair along with other things, is desirable. However, even though such chairs are foldable for easy transport, they typically still cover a wide area and thus take up a lot of space when folded, which makes packing or storing the chairs difficult, especially when they must be crammed into a space such as the trunk of a car with a number of other objects such as a cooler, blankets and bags. That is, most prior art beach and lawn chairs are foldable only in one direction—typically front to back. For example, the back support and the seat support of the chair are folded towards each other so the frame, when folded, lies flat in an essentially rectangular shape. When packing the folded chair into a car, the folded chair must be laid flat, thereby occupying a wide footprint in the car.
Other chair designs have been developed that can be folded to a collapsed or bundled state occupying less storage space. For example, some chair designs can be folded in multiple directions, reducing at least the front/back and left/right dimensions between an unfolded set-up condition and a folded, storage condition. However, these chair designs are typically not suitable for certain outdoor uses, such as at the beach or at a picnic, where a reclinable backrest is desired. Heretofore, multi-directional foldable chairs have not been capable of reclining due to the complexity of the means of connecting the various frame members constituting the chair frame.
In view of the foregoing, there is a need for a chair with a reclining back support when in a set-up condition that can be collapsed in multiple directions in order to reduce the space occupied by the chair in a folded and completely collapsed condition. Further, there is a need for such a chair that can be folded to a completely collapsed, bundled condition with minimal effort, without limiting or compromising the structural features permitting reclining of the chair's backrest support. Accordingly, it is a general object of the present invention to provide a unifoldable reclining chair design that overcomes the problems and drawbacks associated with reclinable folding chairs, and therefore significantly improves the utility of such a chair in the set-up condition while permitting easy transportation and/or storage in a completely collapsed condition.
In general, there is a need for a reclinable and collapsible chair that can be easily folded by a user with minimal effort. In this regard, a desirable folding chair design reduces the number of folding steps. It is a general object of the present invention, therefore, to provide a chair that can be easily folded and collapsed in multiple directions, essentially front to back and left to right, with a single folding action—e.g., inward force on the armrests of the chair. In this regard, such a chair design that can be folded from its set-up condition to a completely collapsed and bundled condition with a single folding action is herein referred to as a unifoldable chair.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a unique foldable reclining chair frame structure that is lightweight, easily transportable, easily storable, and easy to operate between its set-up condition and its collapsed condition, and that further builds upon design concepts in the inventor's own copending application Ser. No. 12/726,141 for a “Two Way Foldable Chair” and copending application Ser. No. 12/726,154 for a “Two Way Foldable Chair”, both of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention addresses these issues, and provides a means to circumvent the associated drawbacks of such prior art foldable chair designs.